Libertarian eutopia. Mostly about war. Discusses protective associations like those found in 1974 Nozick. Vinge says that his The Peace War (1984) can be thought of as a prequel and his Marooned in Realtime. New York: Bluejay, 1986 as a sequel.

Dystopia in which advanced technology is used to take over the world and control it. The Peace Authority was supposed to create a better world, but it simply maintained its own power by suppressing all opposition. Individuals successfully resist, and an area of northern Mexico called Aztl{\'a}n has maintained a degree of independence.\ Vinge writes that The Peace War can be thought of as a prequel to his 1985 \“The Ungoverned,\” which describes a libertarian eutopia.\